Myths about Missionaries
Evangelism is Confrontational – Part 1

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Today’s myth speaks of the often assumed thought that to share my faith I must be confrontational, but the apostle disagrees with this thought. He tells us in today’s key verse that our conversations should be full of grace. He uses the Greek work “charis” for our English word grace. Charis is that which reflects joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness. These adjectives hardly seem confrontational. The Bible is describing a conversation where the speaker is very careful to be considerate of the listener.

The Apostle Paul goes on to remind us that our conversations should be “seasoned with salt.” He is thinking of the effect that salt has on meat. It brings out its flavor and makes the meal even more appealing. So, it is, according to the apostle, with our conversations about our faith. We are to say things that make Jesus more appealing to the listener. That does not mean that we “soft sell” our faith or cut off the more challenging aspects of it. It means that we are discerning in our words and grace-filled in our approach.

Since God cares about the person we are talking to more than we could ever care, let’s determine to listen to His Spirit as we talk. The Spirit might encourage us to stop talking and allow our actions to “preach.” (Continued)

Father, I give you permission to point out any area of my life that is not full of grace. May I represent you well. In Jesus’ name, amen.